It was Christmas 2007 when I was first introduced to the genius of Morecambe and Wise - an appropriate time of year, when you think about it, since they ruled Christmas television for more than a decade. In my case, it was a programme on GOLD titled Morecambe & Wise: The Greatest Moment that caught my attention. It was basically a countdown of their greatest sketches, as voted for by the British public, interspersed with interviews and a retelling of their story. For me, it was enough to spark a huge interest in Morecambe and Wise, much to the delight of my dad, who grew up watching them in the 70s when they were at the peak of their powers.
I unashamedly confess that I am a Morecambe and Wise anorak, a hopeless case. I have their ATV, BBC and Thames shows on DVD, as well as their less talked about feature films. I have read numerous books about them and seen various documentaries. I can't get enough. It doesn't matter how often I see the same sketches and hear the same one-liners - I laugh hysterically every single time. I can say in all honesty that I could watch the Grieg's Piano Concerto routine with Andre Previn ten times in a row and it would still be as funny to me as the first time I ever saw it. Great comedy stands the test of time, and people will still be laughing at Morecambe and Wise years from now, just as they still are today. They transcend the barriers of age - something that wouldn't take long to work out if you were to walk into our living room and see me, my dad and my younger sister all laughing at the same sketch.
There has been an unfair tendency among far too many people to talk about the comic genius of Eric Morecambe and completely ignore Ernie Wise - or, worse still, to say that Ernie didn't matter at all, or just 'wasn't funny'. This is complete and utter rubbish. Yes, Eric was a comic genius, but he was also the first to admit that he couldn't possibly have survived as a solo act. He needed Ernie there to bounce off and to keep him grounded. To put it simply, Ernie kept the whole thing ticking over. He also knew exactly how to get the best out of Eric, which is a skill in itself. People talk about him as the straight man of the duo, but he was so much more than that, as he proved time and time again in his role as pompous playwright during the years Eddie Braben was writing their material. Watch those flights of fancy and that comic air of self-importance and then try telling me that Ernie wasn't funny. As well as that, he was a great song and dance man, and he really shines in those wonderful choreographed routines. That's why I can't comprehend why some people insist on pitting them against one another. They were a double act, and that was it.
It's far too difficult for me to pick my own favourite Morecambe and Wise moment. It would be easy to talk about the 'classics', like the Breakfast sketch or Grieg's Piano Concerto, but right now the ones that spring to mind are some of the more obscure sketches. Their parody of Top of the Form, where Eric's button won't work, is one of the funniest things I've ever seen. The Bank Robber sketch, featuring Eric as the most incompetent criminal ever. Or going back to the ATV years, the Flamenco dancing sketch, which I think is one of Ernie's most hilarious moments, and the West Side Story parody. Then there's my 12-year-old sister's favourite sketch, which involves Ernie trying to sing 'I'm Wishing' while Eric is down the well playing the part of the 'echo' and messing the whole thing up as usual. Sheer brilliance.
One of the greatest injustices in comedy is the fact that Morecambe and Wise never made it big internationally. They appeared several times on Ed Sullivan in the 60s, but they just weren't embraced by America as a whole. There are conflicting opinions as to why this was, but I still believe that had they been able to stay in the American public's conciousness for a long enough period of time, they would have been huge. You only have to look at the number of British comics that achieved success in America to see that it was possible. Of course, they achieved iconic status this side of the pond, but it's still a shame that even to this day, despite the worldwide popularity of YouTube, they remain relatively unknown outside of the British Isles.
Eric Morecambe died in 1984, some eight years before I was even born, and Ernie Wise in 1999, when I was just seven. Therefore I wasn't aware of either event at the time, yet I feel an overwhelming sense of sadness when I think about both their absences. When you're watching the shows and laughing at their combined genius, it's very easy to forget that they are no longer around, and it can come as a bit of a nasty shock when you are suddenly reminded. I know this sounds terribly clichéd, but as long as we have the work they left behind, there will always be a part of Eric and Ernie that is still with us. It's there to be cherished and celebrated, and as much as I wish that I had been alive to appreciate them while they were here, I will always be grateful for the fact that I can watch them whenever I like.
Morecambe and Wise never fail to cheer me up if I'm having an off day, or to simply make a good day even better. It's pure escapism, and I can honestly say that they set the bar for great comedy as far as I'm concerned. You'd be hard pressed to find me two bigger comic heroes.
